Sexting Could be Illegal

Be Responsible or Let your Kid Ruin Their Life – Sexting is a Potential Sex Crime A recent report by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy suggests that over 20% of teens (ages 13-19) and an incredible 33% of young adults (ages 20-26) have shared nude or semi-nude pictures of themselves either over mobile phone text messaging or by posting online. Teenage girls are a little more likely to do this than boys and a very disturbing 11% of the young teen girls (ages 13-16) admitted to sending inappropriate photos of themselves. Recent reports from The Nielsen Company and the Pew Research Center point to several factors that should be causing concern for parents and guardians. These issues are also an opportunity for solution providers. There is an increase in the percentage of young people that use mobile phones, the amount of texting they do, and more troubling the percentage of young adults that are involved in “sexting” – the sending of provocative images or text messages from mobile phones. What’s the fuss? Just innocent fun, youth discovering their new sexuality? You might want to reconsider. Sending a sexually explicit image of someone underage is a sex crime. Young people are being arrested, convicted and having to register as sex offenders. They are gambling with more than emotional distress and humiliation, charges of sexual misconduct can result in getting suspended and expelled from school, losing scholarships, and losing jobs. A felony conviction may also affect future employment opportunities, such as those offered in law enforcement and other high-security clearance positions. In other words, ruining their lives over a little “innocent” fun. There isn’t anything innocent about it. Consider that if a sixteen year old sends a sexting image of themselves – they could be breaking child pornography statues in most states. A conviction in felony court for “sexting” will result in other serious consequences. In addition to the potential jail sentence and/or fine levied by a judge, they may be required to register with the Sex Offender Registration Board for the next 20 years. Additionally, the criminal court may order the surrender and destruction of the computer or digital devices used. As sending text messages from cellular phones has become a centerpiece in youth social life, parents, educators and advocates have grown increasingly concerned about the role of cellular phones in the sexual lives of teens. A fresh survey from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project (pewinternet.org/topics/Teens.aspx) found that 4% of mobile phone using teens ages twelve to seventeen say they have sent sexually suggestive nude or nearly nude images or videos of themselves to other people via text messaging. This activity is typically known as “sexting” in the current slang. Additionally, fifteen percent say they have received such images of someone they actually know via SMS. According to research from marketing research firm The Nielsen Company (blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/under-aged-texting-usage-and-actual-cost/) American young people send an unbelievable average of ten text messages every hour that they are not in school or sleeping – and probably a lot during school too! By evaluating over than 40,000 monthly US mobile mobile bills, Nielsen concluded that American teenagers sent an average of an astonishing 3,146 text messages every month during the third quarter 2009. Their younger counterparts – tweenagers – aged nine to twelve sent an average of 1,146 text messages every month. That equates to four per hour they were in school or not sleeping. To put that in perspective, the average number of monthly texts sent by all mobile users collectively was a little more than 500. In the fourth quarter 2009, tweenage users from age 9 to 12 increased SMS usage by eight percent just about doubling the quantity of text messages. Pew Research points out that sending provocative images occurs most often under one of three specific scenarios: The first, exchanges of images just between two romantic partners; the next, lists exchanges between partners that are then shared outside the relationship; followed by, exchanges between people who are not yet in a relationship, but with one person hoping there will be one. Teens were interviewed and gave Amanda Lenhart, Senior Research Specialist and author of the report various explanations surrounding the motivation to get involved with sexting. These included the researcher’s interpretation that “…sexually suggestive images had become a form of relationship currency,”; that sexting images “… are shared as a part of or instead of sexual activity,” and that SMS text message sexting is a way of starting or maintaining a relationship. Sensitive images are also passed along to friends “… for their entertainment value, as a joke, or for fun.” Teenagers also shared with researchers the peer pressure to share these types of images. Not surprisingly the report also reveals that young people who are more intense users of cell phones are more likely to to be sent sexually suggestive images. For these teenagers, the phone has become such an important conduit for communication and a variety of content that doing without it is nearly unthinkable. The desire for risk-taking and sexual exploration during the teenage years mixed with routine connection using mobile phones and other mobile devices “…creates a ‘perfect storm’ for sexting,” said Pew’s Amanda Lenhart. “Teenagers have always grappled with issues around sex and relationships, but their coming-of-age mistakes and transgressions have never been so easily transmitted and archived for others to see.” Despite the indications that per user usage has peaked (they can’t possibly use them more can they?!?) Nielsen forecasts that overall text messaging usage will increase as the avid user population ages and entices the older generations to text with them in order to keep in contact with them. Current SMS users will continue to use texting extensively and as tweenagers age they will increase usage. The average number of text messages per user has increased every year, and there is room for growth. If you’ve got kids then in all likelihood not shocked by the usage numbers. In all probability most parents can’t believe their teens are involved with sexting, or they are looking for ways to find out. While parents may fume that all the texts their teens and tweens are sending will land them in the poorhouse, Nielsen analysis indicates the average cost of a single text message is only about one penny. The real issue concerning parents is not so much how often teens use their phones but more about how they use their phones, and when they are using them. Sexting is an extremely complex topic. Consequently, it is very hard to provide advice on how best to manage these situations. The National Center For Missing & Exploited Children policy states that there are four roles to every sexting case: someone seen in the photo, the individual who took the photo, the distributor(s) of the photo, and the recipient(s) of the photo. In some cases one person may assume more than one of these roles (e.g., a child takes a sexually explicit image, of herself and sends it to a classmate). In other situations, multiple people may take on a single role (e.g., a child takes a sexually explicit picture of himself and sends it to a classmate who then forwards the photo to the entire high school senior class). It is important to think about the intentions and motives of each of the parties under different circumstances. The National Center For Missing & Exploited Children advocates parents monitor cell phone use. A workable technological solution available for parents and guardians to discover what what’s going on with their kids is mobile monitoring software. Sexting can be against the law. Parents are responsible to do something about it. Especially considering low cost solutions can be ordered over the internet.